The Holy Spirit Then and Now: What Changed at Pentecost?

Published On: November 19, 2025

“The Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified” (John 7:39). This verse raises a profound question: if the Spirit of God moved over the waters at creation, empowered Moses and the prophets, and filled the tabernacle with glory, what did John mean? What changed at Pentecost?

The answer reveals both dramatic transformation and beautiful continuity in how God works through His Spirit across the ages.

WHAT CHANGED: THE NEW COVENANT DIFFERENCE

From the Few to the Many: In the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit came upon specific individuals for specific purposes. When the 70 elders received the Spirit, Moses exclaimed, “Would that all the LORD’s people were prophets, that the LORD would put his Spirit on them!” (Numbers 11:29). It was a longing, not a reality.

Kings like Saul received the Spirit for leadership. Prophets like Ezekiel were gripped by the Spirit for revelation. Craftsmen like Bezalel were filled with the Spirit to build the tabernacle (Exodus 31:3). But this was selective empowerment, not universal indwelling.

Pentecost changed everything. Peter declared that Joel’s ancient prophecy was now fulfilled: “I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy” (Acts 2:17). Not just prophets and kings, but “all flesh”—servants and handmaidens, young and old. Paul could later write what would have been unthinkable in the Old Testament: “Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him” (Romans 8:9). The exception became the rule.

From Temporary to Permanent: David’s prayer haunts the Old Testament believer: “Take not your Holy Spirit from me” (Psalm 51:11). He had witnessed the Spirit depart from Saul, his predecessor, leaving him vulnerable to darkness (1 Samuel 16:14). The Spirit’s presence could not be presumed permanent.

But Jesus promised something radically different: “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever” (John 14:16). Forever. Not conditional on performance, not subject to withdrawal. The Spirit would remain as an eternal seal, “the guarantee of our inheritance” (Ephesians 1:14).

This permanence reflects the superiority of the new covenant over the old. What was written on stone tablets would now be written on hearts of flesh (2 Corinthians 3:3). What could fade would now remain with abiding glory.

From External Power to Internal Transformation: In the Old Testament, the Spirit primarily empowered for external tasks—leadership, prophecy, miraculous acts, artistic skill. Samson received supernatural strength. Bezalel gained extraordinary craftsmanship. The prophets spoke the very words of God.

While the Spirit still empowers believers for service today (Acts 1:8), the new covenant emphasis falls on internal transformation. Ezekiel’s prophecy finds its fulfillment: “I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh” (Ezekiel 36:26).

The Spirit now works from the inside out, producing His fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). Regeneration, sanctification, and Christlikeness have become His primary mission in every believer’s life.

WHAT REMAINS: THE UNCHANGING SPIRIT

Yet for all that changed at Pentecost, we must not imagine we worship a different Spirit or serve a different God.

One Spirit, One Divine Person: The Spirit who hovered over the formless void (Genesis 1:2) is the same Spirit who filled the upper room. The Spirit who inspired Moses to write Torah is the same Spirit who inspired the apostles to write the Gospel. Peter declares this explicitly: “No prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:21).

The changes at Pentecost represent progressive revelation, not a different revelation. The bud has become the flower, but it’s the same plant.

The Same Regenerating and Sanctifying Work: The Reformed tradition recognises that Old Testament believers were genuinely saved, genuinely regenerated by the same Spirit. Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness (Genesis 15:6). David experienced spiritual transformation, crying out, “Create in me a clean heart, O God” (Psalm 51:10).

God promised through Moses that He would “circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the LORD your God with all your heart” (Deuteronomy 30:6). This is regeneration language. The difference now is not that the Spirit began doing something entirely new, but that this work became universally available to all who believe in Christ.

The Same Mission of Glorifying God: Whether empowering Joshua to lead Israel or filling Stephen with boldness before his martyrdom, the Spirit has always worked to accomplish God’s redemptive purposes and display His glory. The mission hasn’t changed—only its scope and intensity have expanded.

WHAT ABOUT SPIRITUAL GIFTS TODAY?

Faithful Reformed Christians differ on whether certain spiritual gifts continue today. Cessationists argue that foundational gifts like apostleship and prophecy accomplished their authenticating purpose and ceased with the completion of Scripture (Ephesians 2:20; Hebrews 2:3-4). Continuationists counter that Paul’s command to “earnestly desire the spiritual gifts” (1 Corinthians 14:1) remains binding until Christ returns.

Both positions, rightly held, honour Scripture and affirm what matters most: the Spirit’s indispensable work in regeneration, sanctification, illumination of Scripture, and empowerment for witness. These are not points of debate but pillars of Christian experience.

LIVING IN THE SPIRIT’S POWER

The Holy Spirit’s work shows both magnificent continuity and dramatic expansion. What was selective became universal. What was temporary became permanent. What was externally focused became internally transformative. The same Spirit who inspired prophets now indwells every believer, conforming us to the image of Christ.

Moses’ wish has been granted. We are all, in Christ, a kingdom of priests with access to God through the Spirit. The question is not merely academic—it’s intensely personal. Are you living in conscious dependence on the Spirit who now dwells within you permanently? Are you being transformed by His sanctifying work?

Pentecost didn’t just change how the Spirit works. It changed everything about how we relate to God.

RELATED FAQs

Did Old Testament believers have the Holy Spirit living inside them? This is debated even within Reformed circles. The clearest answer is the Spirit worked in Old Testament saints to regenerate and sanctify them, but not in the same permanent, sealing way promised after Pentecost. Jesus explicitly said the Spirit was with the disciples but would soon be in them (John 14:17). The distinction suggests a qualitative difference in indwelling. While the Spirit’s saving work was present, the new covenant reality of permanent internal residence awaited the glorification of Christ.

Some Pentecostals say the “baptism of the Holy Spirit” is a second experience after salvation. Is this biblical? The Reformed view holds Spirit baptism occurs at conversion, not as a subsequent experience. Paul writes, “In one Spirit we were all baptised into one body” (1 Corinthians 12:13)—all believers, not a special class. The book of Acts describes the unique transitional moments as the gospel spread to different groups (Jews, Samaritans, Gentiles), not a normative two-stage Christian life. Being “filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18) is a repeated command for growth, not a one-time second blessing. Every believer has the Spirit fully; the question is whether the Spirit has all of us.
Why did Jesus say it was better for Him to leave so the Spirit could come? This seems counterintuitive—wouldn’t having Jesus physically present be ideal? But consider: Jesus in the flesh could only be in one place at one time, ministering to a limited number of people. The Spirit’s coming meant Christ’s presence could be with every believer simultaneously, everywhere, forever. Additionally, the Spirit could not be given in fullness until Christ completed His atoning work and ascended to the Father (John 7:39). The Spirit applies what Christ accomplished; the work had to be finished first. Far from being a consolation prize, the Spirit’s presence is the risen Christ’s ongoing ministry to His church.

Can the Holy Spirit be “grieved” or “quenched” if He’s permanently with us? Yes, and these warnings show the Spirit is a person, not just a power. Paul commands, “Do not grieve the Holy Spirit” (Ephesians 4:30), and “Do not quench the Spirit” (1 Thessalonians 5:19). We grieve Him through sin, particularly sins that damage Christian community. We quench Him by suppressing His work and resisting His promptings. Importantly, these warnings don’t suggest the Spirit will leave us—the Ephesians passage immediately mentions He has “sealed” us—but that we can diminish our experience of His power and joy through disobedience. The permanence of His presence makes our sin against Him more serious, not less.

If all believers have the Spirit, why do some Christians seem more “spiritual” than others? Having the Spirit and being filled with the Spirit are distinct realities. Every believer receives the Spirit at conversion (Romans 8:9), but Paul commands believers to “be filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18)—present tense, ongoing action. Being filled means yielding control, walking in obedience, and cultivating communion with God through prayer and Scripture. It’s not about getting more of the Spirit but about the Spirit getting more of us. This explains why mature believers exhibit more of the Spirit’s fruit and power—not because they’re a special class, but because they’ve practiced sustained surrender to His sanctifying work.
Roman Catholics say the Spirit works primarily through the institutional church and sacraments. How is the Reformed view different? While Reformed theology highly values the church and sacraments as means of grace, we reject the idea that the Spirit’s work is confined to institutional channels or dependent on human mediators. The Spirit works immediately in the believer’s heart to regenerate, sanctify, and illuminate Scripture (1 John 2:27). He distributes gifts “as he wills” (1 Corinthians 12:11), not as a hierarchy determines. The Reformation recovered the priesthood of all believers precisely because the Spirit now indwells each Christian directly. We honour church and sacraments as the Spirit’s ordinary means without making them His only means or granting institutional gatekeeping power over His sovereign work.

How does the Spirit’s work relate to biblical prophecy being complete? Cessationists and continuationists agree that canonical prophecy—Scripture itself—is complete (Revelation 22:18-19). The debate concerns whether non-canonical prophetic gifts continue. Cessationists note “the faith once for all delivered” (Jude 3) has been fully revealed, and foundational apostles and prophets completed their work (Ephesians 2:20). Continuationists respond that 1 Corinthians 13:8-10 ties cessation to Christ’s return (“when the perfect comes”), not Scripture’s completion, and that prophetic gifts today must be tested against Scripture (1 Thessalonians 5:20-21), implying their continuation. Both views protect Scripture’s sufficiency and authority while differing on the Spirit’s ongoing gifting patterns.

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